On the first of May, May Day, it is a tradition in Ireland to set aside a small area in your house and put a May Altar.

There are no hard and fast rules as to what this should consist of. The Altar can be made up with whatever you have to hand. The only essential item is a small vase that you keep a flower or two in all through the month. As the flowers wilt they are replaced, usually by the children in the house. I remember picking daisies from the back garden or tiny purple flower from within the cracks in the patio stones and taking great pride in making sure that the vase always looked fresh.

A couple of years ago I decided to revitalise this tradition in our home. It was a year where I had misplaced both my engagement and eternity ring as well as a ring Byron gave me when Sian was born. The story of the setting up of that years
Altar had a very happy ending...

1 comments - click here to leave your comment:

Gina my mother and grandmother always did / do this but usually for a departed one's birthday, anniversary (wedding or death) and special occasions - always with a single flower and very similar to what you do. I am wondering if this isn't a celtic tradition that survived in our family over the generations of being "Australians" ...thank you for the lovely post